Mum's terror as security guards intervene after claiming she is followed by 'eastern European-looking man' at Meadowhall

A mum has told of her terror at being followed by an 'eastern European-looking man' while Christmas shopping with her young daughter at Meadowhall.

The Rotherham woman, who did not want to be identified, visited the shopping centre with her child on November 29 when the drama unfolded.

She said a man approached her while she was in one shop and told how he kept appearing throughout the trip.

After making a concerned phone call to her partner, the mum complained to security who escorted her and her infant daughter back to their car.

The mum was left shaken by the encounter, which she shared on Facebook as part of a warning to others to be vigilant when visiting the shopping outlet.

She said: "Just as we got there I walked past a man aged about 35 to 40, he looked eastern European, and suddenly appeared in the same shop as me.

"He asked me if I was doing some Christmas shopping, I didn’t answer and just walked out of the shop.

"About an hour later, after I’d been to a few different shops, I was walking towards Starbucks and turned around and he was right there behind me I was a bit surprised so I stopped because I was a bit worried.

"He just walked ahead of me and I thought I don’t really want to go the same way as him, so I started turning around to walk the other way, but then so did he. At this point I realised he was probably following me."

After making a call to her partner, she raised it with security.

She added: "I went into Boots and they called security for me and security escorted us back to the car.

"I don’t know what he was after or if he just likes scaring women. He has really shaken me up though."

A Meadowhall spokesperson said this was an isolated incident and added: "The safety of visitors and staff at Meadowhall is always our priority and we would ask anyone who is concerned about any form of behavior in the centre to report it to a member of the security team security staff or on-site police.

“We have had one customer speak to a member of our security team about suspicious behaviour but no other incidents have been reported.”

South Yorkshire Police said the matter had not been reported to them but urged anyone who believes they are being followed to tell an officer.

A spokesperson said: "If anyone has concerns about suspicious activity or behaviour, please report this to police – if you’re out and about, you can approach an officer and make them aware of your concerns.

"If you’re in a shopping centre or similar, like Meadowhall, there are security officers or police officers who are there to provide reassurance to the public so please notify them if you are worried about something.

"You can also report suspicious activity by calling 101 and some crimes can be reported online."

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